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Lena Horne (1910-2010) was the Colin Kapernick of her time: as in she was black listed in the industry and got a lot of heat for standing up for what she believed in despite it maybe hindering her opportunities as a singer and actor.
Born in Brooklyn, NY. Horne was of mixed race. African-American, Caucasian, and Native American. She was mainly raised by her grandparents, her mother was an actress with the black theater and traveled constantly. Her father was a gambling kingpin, and left when she was just 3 years old. Despite that, Horne grew up in the upper middle class, and used her good fortune to have a voice in the civil rights movement through out her life.
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Horne was a great beauty, and talent, her rise to stardom was a struggle at first, participating in low budget films, and some singing groups. She finally was cast in Adelaide Hall and Panama Hattie with MGM studios, unfortunately they re edited most of her scenes because she was a black performer so she was only seen by select states that allowed blacks to be seen in film theaters.
She began to focus more on her nightclub appearances as rumors in Hollywood grew about her support for Communist groups even thought Horne said this wasn’t true. Horne wanted to translate to the big screen but said the MGM executives were not keen on interracial relationships. Horne often talked about her struggles to find placement in film and roles that she could play as a woman of mixed race, she was not popular by many in the movie industry for bearing this truth as well.
Despite this, success still followed Horne, she was the first African-American nominated for a Tony for Best Actress for her role as Calypso in Jamaica. In the 1950s and 60s she appeared on many TV shows: Ed Sullivan, Dean Martin, Andy Williams, and Judy Garland to name a few.
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In 1969 she had her own TV special, Monsanto Night Presents Lena Horne. She traveled the world with Tony Bennett for their Tony and Lena shows/concerts. She eventually made Television program appearances on the Cosby Show, Sesame Street, A Different World, and Sanford and Son.
Horne is most notably known for her Nederlander Theatre performance Lena Horne : The Lady and Her Music, it showcased her vocal and stage talent, she was awarded two Grammys and another Tony. The entire show was recorded and made for TV.
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She met with Medgar Evans and JFK before their assassinations. She received an honor award from the NAACP, and worked with Eleanor Roosevelt on anti-lynching laws.
Photo courtesy of www.mothermag.com Horne with Dr. Martin Luther King
Horne refused to sing for non segregated crowds during WWII, and sang in front of African-American soldiers, ignoring the German POWs who were seated in front of them.
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Horne’s career included many firsts for African-Americans, let alone black women in film. She was the first black performer to sign a long term contract at a major studio. (MGM), she was the first African-American on the cover of Motion Picture Magazine, and the first African-American on the board of directors for the Screen Actors Guild.
Horne was a ballsy woman in her time, I think if she were alive today, she would appreciate the recent happenings of women of color in film/entertainment, and feminist advances like the Womens March that took place all around the country. Horne is as beautiful as she was talented, gave the black community many firsts and set the wave for African-American women to be recognized and have a voice in the very tough movie industry
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